Rob Cesternino and Josh Wigler look back at 24 Season 4. As Rob and Josh prepare for the return of 24: Live Another Day this May, we take a look back at Day 4 for Jack Bauer.
In this Episode, Rob and Josh discuss:
- Season four marks a new era of 24, and an end of the old era.
- We meet the new blood in Jack’s life: Audrey and Heller. Josh discusses these two crucial characters to the 24 mythos, and both of them central in Live Another Day.
- We meet several new staff members at CTU: Edgar Stiles, Curtis Manning, Bill Buchanan.
- Chloe’s has an upgraded role at CTU as well, this is the season where the show starts making a big deal out of her.
- This season, David Palmer is out at the White House: Charles Logan makes his debut. He’s about to become 24’s new Nina Myers.
- Jack Bauer meets his toughest villain yet: Habib Marwan. He is ahead of Jack at basically every single turn. One of the all-time most successful villains on 24.
- This is basically the last season for Michelle and Palmer, and one of the final appearances of Classic Tony. How do they fare in their farewell appearances?
- A huge part of why season four is excellent is no more Kim Bauer. Kim is gone, so the extraneous stories are gone. Even the stories that are classifiable as “excess baggage” are enjoyable; the season is never boring, even if it doesn’t always make sense.
- The Bad Stuff: There’s another mole in CTU, but it’s handled quickly. The new CTU director, Erin Driscoll, has a stupid daughter plotline, but it’s handled quickly. Every time the show starts to veer off into “Mountain Lion territory,” it’s handled within a few episodes — and again, it’s rarely boring.
- The Ending: Jack Bauer fakes his death. I used to think this was the moment that 24 jumped the shark. And then I revisited Kim’s Day 2. This is really no worse than that. But it does signal a shift into an era of 24 that kind of goes off the rails.
Join us on Tuesday, April 8th to discuss the Emmy award winning Season 5 of 24
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